Brighten Up Your Rockery
20 October 2003

From here on, it’s all downhill or, in the case of a rockery, uphill and downhill. Winter is just round the corner and most parts of the garden are looking a bit jaded. There is, however, no excuse for the rockery to hibernate. It retains a big advantage. The rocks have interesting shapes, colours and texture. It only needs a few attractive winter plants to make it the talking point of the garden.

A tidy up now will help set it up for the winter. Remove any straggly plants, debris and autumn leaves. Cover the soil with grit, 2 inches deep and dig it in, to improve the drainage, as you plant. When the work is completed another surface layer of grit can be added.

Dwarf conifers are in keeping in a rock area. The dwarf Pinus mugo ’Gnom’ will stay dumpy all of its life looking typically pine complete with cones. Juniperus conferta and J.horizontalis will form evergreen mats, steadily crawling over and taking up the shape of the rocks.

Gaultheria procumbens only grow 6 inches high with a spread of 3 ft. It is sometimes called Wintergreen because its glossy, dark evergreen leaves give off the aroma of wintergreen when they are crushed. Its white or pale pink, summer flowers are followed in winter by aromatic, red fruit which often persist until spring. Unless you are a dedicated alpine grower you won’t mind splashes of colour from winter
flowering pansies and polyanthus. Remember to remove the dead flowers before they set seed or the plants will stop producing new blooms. Winter flowering heathers such as Erica carnea ‘December Red’ and E.c. ‘King George’ will brighten up the dullest day.

Early dwarf bulbs, including crocus, snowdrops, iris and dwarf narcissus will be in bloom before spring starts. Being planted in groups in front of rock outcrops makes them stand out. Hardy cyclamen such as Cyclamen hederifolium (late autumn) and C.coum (late
winter and early spring) look fragile but are hardy, tolerating the worst of weather. To complete the picture a dusting of snow would be nice.

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